Friday, 4 March 2016

Harley by: Michelle Jo Quinn

Harleyby Michelle Jo QuinnRelease Date: January 19th 2016Summary from Goodreads:All of her life, Cadence "Cade" Williams has been lied to…

With her ailing father on his deathbed, a whispered secret sends Cadence’s life into a tailspin. Determined to either confirm or debunk her father’s claim, she sets out on a mission to grow close to the only man with evidence to set things straight. To do that, Cadence earns a position in an elite security firm owned by her father’s old army buddy, Noah “Mac” Mackinley.

Mac is the only man who could hold the evidence to support her father’s claims…

But first, she must prove herself worthy of Mac’s trust and get close enough to find the truth. Her first mission is to watch over an eight-year old girl, Harley Clark.

Harley is not an ordinary girl. She’s the daughter of a rock star…

Despite her fragile appearance, Harley has tenacity and brilliance like nothing Cade has ever seen. To everyone’s surprise—including her own—Cade forms an unlikely friendship with the beautiful wallflower.

Her first assignment just became more interesting…

When Harley’s rock star father, Jax Clark, enters the scene, Cade can’t deny the instant attraction for the self-proclaimed bad boy. Tattoos, piercing eyes, and a raspy voice that sends thousands of fans into a screaming frenzy, he’s more than just a heartthrob. Worse, Jax starts to pay her more attention than she expects.

She’s faced with a choice—get lured in by the celebrity world and lose any chance of finding out the truth, or stick to the plan and avoid Jax at all costs to earn Mac’s trust.

Michelle's love for writing blossomed when her father gave her a diary. However, instead of recounting her daily life, she wrote stories of fictional people. Like most of her characters, she believes in Happily Ever After. Naturally, she finds harmony in writing romance.

An unabashed, self-proclaimed foodie, Michelle loves to try new food whenever she travels. She once had triple crème Brie and duck rillette for lunch on top of Grouse Mountain.Michelle is an active member of RWA and several of its chapters. She lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two kids.

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Excerpt

Early in the morning, Cade was up and ready. Harley was still passed out on the bed. In front of the high windows, Cade marvelled at the busy streets of downtown LA. She was drying her hair with a towel when she heard voices outside her door. Curious, she looked through the peephole. Her stomach churned at what she saw. With little sleep—as Harley moved a bit too much during the night—and no coffee, Cade’s fuse was too short. Before she could stop herself, she swung her door open and faced the three people in the hallway.

Jax looked like a boy who was caught with his hand in the cookie jar. In this case, his hands were around two women. He removed his hands from his newfound friends and used one to mess up his hair.

“Miss Williams.”

Cade should know better. She really should, but nothing was stopping her from holding back her thoughts. “Seriously? You had them in there last night while your daughter slept next to your room?” The two women scoffed at her. She stared at both of them, not bothering to hide what she thought.

Ignoring Cade, the women giggled and pecked Jax on the cheek, and for good measure, one of them cupped him on his denim-clad crotch. “Bye, Jax, call us!” They gave Cade another quick, snooty perusal before walking away.

Cade fumed. Her arms crossed over her heaving chest. “Classy.” She was about to turn away when Jax grabbed hold of her arm. “I could kick your ass for this,” she warned him, but she didn’t pull her arm away.

“But you won’t.” Jax’s voice was low and deep. He made her face him, stepping forward until he was a few inches away from her. She could feel heat coming off his naked torso. He smelled like sex and alcohol. He smelled like his women, and it made Cade gag.

“Let go of me. I don’t give a shit if you’re my boss or if you’re some Hollywood star,” Cade spat at him. “You’re disgusting.”

“Disgusting?” He feigned hurt, pressing a hand over his chest. “Why, Miss Williams, you flatter me!”

Cade narrowed her eyes and pulled his hand off her arm. “You smell like retched pus—” Her room door opened behind her.

“Good morning!” Harley’s cheery disposition interrupted them.

Jax didn’t take his eyes off Cade as he greeted her daughter, “Hey, kiddo. Did you have a good night’s sleep?”

“Yeah.” Harley surprised them by giving her father a quick hug. Jax looked down at his daughter, messing up her hair. “I’m hungry.”

“We’ll get some breakfast up here. Go inside and call room service.”

Harley obeyed. Once again Cade was alone again with her half-naked boss.

How could he be like that? How could he stand himself? she asked inwardly. He seemed to be getting better at this parenting thing, then he pulled something horrifying. Was it because they were in this city? Was it part of his rock star status? Cade had been able to keep her opinions to herself because she thought Jax was trying to make a difference in his and Harley’s lives, but the groupies from yesterday and this morning were enough to convince her otherwise.

“You don’t know what it’s like,” he told Cade, his eyes burrowing into hers. “It’s lonely at the top.”

Cade furrowed her brows. “It’s not an excuse, Jax,” she faltered, surprised that she had called him by that name.

“I’m trying. Can’t you see?” Jax raised his hands in front of him. “I slipped. It happened. What do you expect me to do?”

“Do what you want, Mr. Clark, just don’t do it in front of your daughter. It’s Harley I’m concerned about. I want to make sure she doesn’t get hurt by people, and that includes you.”

“What about me, Cade? Aren’t you concerned for me too?”

Cade sucked in a gasp. Why would he ask that? Then she remembered the kiss. Had it meant more to him? After a while, she had tried to chalk it up to this image he had to keep up. The bad boy rocker persona who screwed anyone he wanted, and kissed any woman within grasp. She was sorry she let it happen, and she was even sorrier that she had thought of it more. Thought of him more.

“You’re not any of my concern. I’m here for Harley. That’s what you hired me to do.”

Harley reappeared, holding up a menu and chatting on the hotel phone. “I ordered for myself. What do you guys want?” She looked up at Cade, then Jax.

“I’m fine, Harley,” Cade said. Normally, she’d have a big breakfast that would last her for most of the day, but finding Jax in the hallway had turned her stomach.

Jax bent down to Harley’s eye level. “I’ll have waffles with chocolate sauce, strawberries, whipped cream, and an espresso.”

“That’s a lot of sugar, Dad,” Harley said with a burst of laughter.

If his back wasn’t leaning against the threshold, Jax would have stumbled. Harley had just called him “Dad.” He pushed a struggling breath out of his mouth and wrapped his daughter in a tight embrace.